I hear-tell from some of my colleagues who ran CIM that there was a tough wind on the backside of the course. I think you choosing a 5K was wise. The first 10K was seemed very fast (or the marker was misplaced) and times slowed dramatically after that.

Jim, sorry you couldn't make it to CIM. I was looking forward to finally meeting you. But congrats on the great 5k.

ChakaKahn -- wow! Way to go. Welcome to the club. :-)

I just got back from CIM. Discovered I can't post to RA from my iPhone. (One more gripe against the new forum software.) I ran just as planned -- 7:20s first half, 7:10s second half, for 3:09:4x. I'm very happy with that. I ran 5 minutes faster last year, but I weighed 10 pounds less, and I trained hard for it as my fall goal marathon. This time I'm not in active training, and just ran it for fun. And of course I'm a year older.

The lack of a carb drink did have a big effect on me, I think. I was light headed by 18, and though my legs felt fine all day, I really, really wanted to stop and walk. Definitely running out of glycogen. Didn't have much kick at the end, either, which is unusual for me.

And yes, there was a nasty wind. Damn cold, and from the south. That hit miles 5-10 the hardest, but there were also later sections pointing south.

ChakaKahn is being modest. Read his race report - he was second overall! Nice one dude.

I sneaked a peak at the CIM results and unless I'm getting George's name wrong he did awesome but I'll leave him to narrate his tale.

I ran in the inaugural Santa Barbara Marathon and had an even more disastrous run than my first marathon - 3:26. I drank more this time - a full cup at miles 4, 8 and 12 but it wasn't leaving my stomach and I cramped so bad at mile 16 I stopped dead because I couldn't breath. Literally. Quite alarming. Oh, and even more copious vomiting at the finish - that fluid wasn't going anywhere (except out the way it came in). So I'm out of the marathon game until such time as I can either jog a 3hr marathon (unlikely) or find some secret trick to keeping fluids down and absorbing them. My first half was fine 1:32, but the second half, 1:54, was slower than my Pier to Peak time - and that has 4,000 ft of ascent!!

I didn't see Ryan out there but looking at some picture from the early part of the race (mile 4?) I'm pretty sure he was just ahead of me. Again, results are up but I'll leave Ryan to tell his story. It was COLD at the start. I'm in the fashionable ensemble of black knitted hat (courtesy of my wife), old gray sock arm warmers (courtesy of my wife) and 49c Home Depot gardening gloves. Mmmm snazzy and cheap.

We're ahead of the 3hr pacer here because they went out fast and then jammed on the brakes really hard around the 3 mile mark. I think the pacer did come in under 3 though.

The course was a) more beautiful than expected - running down the center of the road gives you some much better vistas than when you are crammed on the pavement trying to avoid dogs, kids, bikes, strollers and, at dusk, skunks but b) tougher than expected. The rolling hills of the first half left me unprepared to take advantage of the downhills on the second. The uphills in the last 6 miles of the race, a long stretch at miles 20-22 and a short 170' hill near mile 24, were tough.

I'll post a fuller race report later because I think this is going to become a great marathon. It was just beautiful this morning and you could tell that the race directors were runners because of some of the little touches.

Okay, one more picture - the winner, Carlos Handler (2:24), coming down Las Positas towards the ocean at mile 23.

John - that looks like a really beautiful location for a bad day out! Sorry to hear about your second half, doesn't sound like a lot of fun. Good job hanging in there and finishing, I know how ugly those last 6 miles can be.....

Jim, sorry you couldn't make it to CIM. I was looking forward to finally meeting you. But congrats on the great 5k...

I just got back from CIM. Discovered I can't post to RA from my iPhone. (One more gripe against the new forum software.) I ran just as planned -- 7:20s first half, 7:10s second half, for 3:09:4x.

Bob,

Have you ever run the Sawyer Camp Trail? http://www.bahiker.com/southbayhikes/sawyercamp.html

It's pretty convenient to Menlo Pk. Maybe we could meet for a run there some time. I'm racing the next 2 weekends but those should be last 2 for December. I'm also off on Wednesdays which is actually the most convenient for me.

Drop me a PM if you are interested.

Nice job this morning at CIM. After hearing about those cold winds I'm not so disappointed now that I didn't make it.

I finished with a chip time of 3:08:08. My problem was with the head wind and my pit stop. I had no kick either. My last mile was a little slow. And I need to work on my hydration so I don't have to take a pit stop again in the middle of the race. Because of the head wind, people kind of ran in packs. I lost contact with my preferred pack with the right pace after my pit stop. And had to exert a lot of energy fighting the wind to catch up with the pack again.

Jim, sorry you couldn't make it to CIM. I was looking forward to finally meeting you. But congrats on the great 5k.

ChakaKahn -- wow! Way to go. Welcome to the club. :-)

I just got back from CIM. Discovered I can't post to RA from my iPhone. (One more gripe against the new forum software.) I ran just as planned -- 7:20s first half, 7:10s second half, for 3:09:4x. I'm very happy with that. I ran 5 minutes faster last year, but I weighed 10 pounds less, and I trained hard for it as my fall goal marathon. This time I'm not in active training, and just ran it for fun. And of course I'm a year older.

The lack of a carb drink did have a big effect on me, I think. I was light headed by 18, and though my legs felt fine all day, I really, really wanted to stop and walk. Definitely running out of glycogen. Didn't have much kick at the end, either, which is unusual for me.

And yes, there was a nasty wind. Damn cold, and from the south. That hit miles 5-10 the hardest, but there were also later sections pointing south.

If you can ever solve the problem with that finicky stomach of yours you might want to give the marathon another try. If not I’m sure you’ll continue to get plenty of enjoyment and self satisfaction from this great sport just like you have been these past few years. Fwiw last month marked 31 years of running for me since my first race in 1978. In 22 of those years I didn’t run a marathon yet I’m still as excited about racing as I ever was—maybe more so.

Have a good recovery; then get ready to bring on 2010. As usual another great report and pics.

wait...huh?? there's a sb marathon?! i'm obviously quite late to this party. what's the route?? details! can't wait to read the report. that's my favorite town in this country. must've been chilly/windy this time of year..very interested for 2010 or beyond.

I feel your pain. A very tough and gutsy run nonetheless. Drop me a an e-mail dwane_jackson@hotmail.com with the exact details of the problem - type of pain, when it starts etc and as I study every drug known to mankind for my anaesthetic primary I will try to think of a pharmoacological intervention for you - possibly a prokinetic like metoclopramide or erythromycin. Anyway will see what we can think of. Agree with Jim though - I would be pretty happy with any of your results this year.

Chaka Kahn - second overall, a sub 3 hour! Now that is a weekend to be proud of. An absolutely fantastic result. Congratulations. I can only see your times tumbling in 2010. Especially if you keep running those impressive negative splits

Geo - nice run in tough conditions. Methinks only a little while to go till you crack that magic 3 hour barrier. Good luck with the next cycle of training.

BHearn - yep, one day I hope to crack out those consistent marathon's with seemingly effortless ease, apart from the years of training. Mate you are a machine. Congratulations

I didn't see Ryan out there but looking at some picture from the early part of the race (mile 4?) I'm pretty sure he was just ahead of me. Again, results are up but I'll leave Ryan to tell his story.

This picture is priceless! Where did you get it?

Im the dork in the black A Snails Pace singlet. The funny thing about this picture, the girl right next to me and I were making fun of the dork to my left who was running awkwardly with his arms stiff at his sides, and in Converse All-Stars and cargo shorts. Guy had to be a relay runner. But I guess I look just as dorky, but from a different perspective.

My story is simple- I was on pace at about 6:45avg until mile 22. First half was in 1:28:09, maybe a bit fast. Turning down the hill on Los Positas, I couldnt hold pace on the sharply banked road. It was awkward to run down it. Then the big uphill on cliff drive made the wheels completely fall off. I did get to the top of the hill still on pace, but I couldnt ever get the wheels back going and I finished jogging 8:30.

Yes, I agree about the 3 hour pacer, he was all over the place in the first few miles. So I ditched him when he slammed on the brakes, as you referred to. The pacer passed me right before the big uphill.

Sorry you had a bad race. Im decently happy with mine. Just gotta try again!